Most of us will get married only once in our lives, which is why we want that occasion to be really special. For many couples, this will be one of their most memorable days, something that they will reminisce about when they’re old and gray and hopefully, still in love. That’s why most couples want the big day to be perfect, from the ceremony to the food to the flowers to the venue. Actually, the wedding venue is one of the most important elements in the success of a wedding celebration. If you live in Davao City or simply want to hold your wedding there, there are many Davao hotels and resorts ideal for holding your reception. As a matter of fact, there are many affordablehotels in Davao City as well as gardens and restaurants that you can use.

When you’re searching for a venue in which to hold your wedding, you’ll first have to decide whether you want an outdoor location or an indoor one. Your choice will naturally be influenced by your budget as well as the time of year in which your wedding will take place. For instance, a beach or garden wedding would be great in the summer, but you’d be better off picking a Davao hotel during the rainy season. Holding your wedding in one of the cheap hotels in Davao City will allow the wedding reception to go on as planned even during foul weather.

If you want to hold your wedding in a scenic spot, then one of the beach resorts on Samal Island would be a great idea. Beach weddings can be very fun and informal affairs, and you can be sure that the venue will look fabulous in pictures, even without much effort at decoration. Alternatively, you can try garden locations like Eden Nature Park or even Loleng’s Mountain Spring Resort. If the weather cooperates, you will be assured of beautiful natural light for your pictures and vivid greenery and blossoms in the background.

Of course, if you want a very formal event, then you can try an upscale Davao hotel. The good thing about choosing a Davao hotel is that weather won’t be such a big factor. A Davao hotel can also be pretty convenient in the sense that you won’t have to worry about negotiating rocky paths in your five-inch heels or getting your gown wet or muddy. You’ll be surrounded by clean, air-conditioned comfort all the time. If you’re on a budget, try one of the cheap hotels in Davao City instead. Many hotels in Davao City will offer you wedding packages and great deals that will include a function room, food, and overnight accommodations for the bridal couple. Hotels in Davao City are also ideal if you don’t have a lot of guests and you can do without a huge ballroom. They also tend to be very accessible, since most of them are located right in the heart of Davao City.

I’ve never believed in being a stranger to one’s own country, so after I heard that my friend Ronald had been taken a job at a call center in Davao City, I immediately gave him a call and took him up on his offer to spend a couple of nights in Davao. He told me to pack an overnight bag and hop on the next flight over. He also said he would take care of booking my accommodations. Since he shares a one-bedroom apartment, he said he would reserve a room for me at one of the cheap hotels in Davao City.

As a young professional who likes to travel I’m certainly no stranger to inexpensive lodgings. I’ve been all over the Philippines – Boracay, Bohol, Sagada to name a few – and I’ve stayed in all kinds of places, from lavish five-star hotels to backpackers’ inns. I don’t mind inexpensive lodgings but it’s a fact that in some hotels you really do get what you pay for.

I needn’t have worried, since Ronald had reserved a room for me at the Jade Dragon’s Suites, located at Aurora Street. I instantly liked the location since the place appeared to be reasonably accessible. As I entered the lobby, I instantly noticed how clean and modern the place looked. I learned that the hotel opened in May of 2012, which makes it a pretty new establishment. The room rates were very reasonable, and I picked the most inexpensive option, which was a Standard room at P750. I reasoned that since we had planned a weekend full of activities, it wouldn’t be practical to spend too much on accommodations. After all, I did not expect to do much at the hotel except sleep.

All that changed, however, due to unforeseen circumstances. While Ronald had planned to take me to Jack’s Ridge for dinner, a strong rain shower altered our plans. After all, in the heavy rain we wouldn’t be able to enjoy the view. I also reasoned that it would be very hard to find a taxi in bad weather.

Just when I thought we’d have to spend the night watching TV in my room, we discovered Chings Resto-Kaffee, a nice coffee shop and restaurant right on the hotel premises. Since I had been looking forward to a delicious dinner, we eagerly sought refuge in this attractive little cafe. I was pleased to discover that it wasn’t just a place to eat – we also amused ourselves with looking at the art work on the walls. There were many interesting paintings from local artists to enjoy, and our food was ready before we knew it. I think we spent more than two hours in there because after we finished our meal, we lingered awhile and ordered a cup of coffee apiece. There was simply so much catching up to do.

The next time I go to Davao, I’m definitely going back to the Jade Dragon’s Suites. It turns out that picking one of the great Davao hotels does make a big difference!

Painting a still life is a time-honored painting genre that dates back to the time of the Flemish and Dutch masters of the Renaissance. While their contemporaries in the Latin countries were busy with religious and humanistic themes, the masters of the Northern countries perfected the art of depicting secular themes and creating meaningful paintings by means of skilful composition and realistic depictions. “First Still Life Painting, a work of acrylic on canvas, is Kim Vale’s take on this venerable tradition.

“First Still Life Painting” depicts a wine bottle, a carafe, a couple of fruits and an empty liquor bottle with a red cover on its side. These items are arranged on a yellow cloth against a background of deep blue and purple. Because a still life painting cannot appeal to human interest in order to create an emotional response in the viewer, it must do so by working with more abstract concepts to produce the desired effect – with color, composition, texture, and light. This painting is reasonably successful in catching the eye, thanks to the interesting shapes and strong colors found in it.

This painting is quite modern in its feel, as it doesn’t seek to represent each object perfectly as much as it tries to give a feel of festiveness and brightness that is slightly reminiscent of the work of masters like Cezanne and Matisse. The yellow in the tablecloth contrasts brightly with the blues and purples in the background, while the fluorescent orange and green fruit that lie amongst the drinking vessels are an almost jarring yet eye-catching note in the very centre of the canvas. In the meantime, there is an interesting, almost ghostly glow in the glass of the bottle in the foreground that sets off the greenish-coppery tones in the carafe at the back. Taken as a whole, the painting is visually appealing and memorable enough – it’s a still life, but it manages to be quite dynamic.

This “First Still Life Painting” is a laudable effort by an artist who seems to have an instinct for colors and arrangements that catch the eye. If you’d like to see more artwork like this or even offer to buy this unique painting, stop by Chings Resto-Kaffee at the Jade Dragon’s Suites, one of the nicest cheap hotels in Davao City. If you love art and are visiting Davao City, then this Davao hotel should be perfect for you.

Still life paintings have been around for a long time, but they continue to be popular especially as decorative pieces. Yet, the best still life paintings are able to transcend the decorative label and manage to become as thought-provoking and emotional an experience to the viewer as any portrait or action painting. Think, for instance, of Van Gogh’s series of sunflower paintings. Amanda Echevarria’s “Shine” strives to achieve this transcendent effect through the discriminating use of a few choice visual elements.

“Shine” is executed with oil pastel on paper. It depicts a couple of luminously glowing blue flowers on a dark ground along with some billows of blue fabric. The artist was obviously having fun working with light in this painting. Indeed, in itself it is a study of how certain surfaces catch light. The fabric has a rich sheen to it that tells us it is satin, while the flowers also exude a wonderful radiance. The way the light strikes these two objects is interesting – while the sheen on the cloth is realistic, the way the flowers are lit goes beyond the limits of what’s possible in the physical world.

In this painting, we have great tension between the natural and the artificial, the deliberate and the accidental, as well as the real and the unreal. We have the flower against the cloth, the nonchalant way the flowers lie and the deliberately arranged folds of fabric, and the lighting effects. It is these tensions that undoubtedly make this painting a conversation piece. The title alone tells us that the artist is interested in exploring these contrasts, and so we should take note of the ones that eventually lend the most character to this painting.

In “Shine” one can’t help but be drawn to the soulful way that the blue flowers glimmer against their background. The satin is meant to be a foil for them, but they clearly outshine it, making their natural beauty triumph over the artifice. These two little blue blossoms stand for loveliness that cannot be hidden and cannot be held back.

If this painting interests you, you will be glad to know that it’s for sale. This painting and others like it can be found at Chings Resto-Kaffee at the Jade Dragon’s Suites, a Davao hotelknown for being inexpensive yet clean and even elegant in a minimalist manner. This is one of the nicest among the cheap hotels in Davao City, so make sure you drop by the next time you’re in Davao.

Landscape painting is one of the most beloved genres all over the world, from Van Gogh’s colorful turbulent depictions of the night sky over Arles to the most tranquil and minimalist renditions of bamboos and misty mountains on silk scrolls from Ancient China. There is something simply magical about a view that is ostensibly accessible to everyone re-imagined and re-constructed through the artist’s eyes and hands. In the three-part series composed of paintings entitled “Morning Lilies,” “The Afternoon Scape,” and “New Dawn,” Glenn Baga gives viewers a glimpse of worlds that are part real and part imagination.

In “Morning Lilies” the viewer is treated to a sight reminiscent of Monet’s iconic water lily paintings. These lilies are also rendered in a slightly Impressionist manner, with the artist paying careful attention to the dappled look of purplish-blue early morning light on dark water. The lily pads themselves are bright green and yellow, solid islands of color over the shifting surface of the pond and punctuated by a single pink-and-white blossom.

“The Afternoon Scape” meanwhile depicts a fiery fall scene, with a blue-and-white sky and lush green mountains providing a foil for the blazing reds and oranges of in the tree tops. All of these elements are reflected in the glass-like surface of a lake, and the whole picture is suggestive of sound and motion beneath the apparent stillness. For instance, the feather-like brushstrokes in the trees make the viewer imagine the breeze rustling through it and the colors of the lake suggest a soft light dancing on its surface.

“New Dawn” on the other hand plays with contrasts rather than complementary hues and shapes. In it, the blue and purple sky is embellished with sorbet-like swirls of melon and citrus yellows. Against it, a series of lines suggesting a forest and two clearly depicted trees are silhouetted darkly. The ground beneath them is a combination of dark and light green, suggesting the steady advance of the sun.

These three paintings are attractive and evocative renderings of nature, just as all good landscape paintings should be. Those who would like to see these three works, purchase them, or see other pieces from local artists should visit the Jade Dragon’s Suites, one of the nice yet cheap hotels in Davao City. This Davao hotel is located on Aurora street and is home to Chings Resto-Kaffee, a cafe that serves up good food and good art at the same time.

The symbolism of the painting is obvious at a glance as we see the anthropomorphic figure of a tree kneeling with the sun behind its back. This figure is a fusion of a pregnant woman and the plant that most symbolises life for many of us. The tree is the woman and the woman is the tree. Roots grow out of her limbs, and branches and leaves sprout from her head and her hair. One hand covers a pair of nourishing breasts while the other cradles a belly that is swollen with child.

This painting would be easy enough to interpret, but what makes the viewer give it a second glance is the expression on the human face that is depicted in this painting. It is not that of a young woman pregnant for the first time but rather a mother who has the wisdom earned over many years of nurturing and caring for her children. The lines of the face are almost harsh as the artist strives to achieve the effect of glowing. It is a countenance lit from within as well as from the ambient light and it is one that is no stranger to strong emotions, including pain.

The serious look of the woman in the picture drives home the point that the ability to bear life is not to be taken lightly – above all, it is not easy. It is a task that is painful at times, and certainly causes a lot of internal turmoil. This is the feeling that the viewer gets from the glowering clouds stacked in the yellow sky and the meaningful pose and expression of the central figure.

This painting and others like it can be found at Chings Resto-Kaffee located in the Jade Dragon’s Suites, known as one of the nicer cheap hotels in Davao City. More than just a Davao hotel, the Jade Dragon’s Suites also allows its guests and patrons to view beautiful works of art and purchase these if they are so inclined.

The tableau of a loving child and mother is one that is very familiar to us in both the fine arts and popular culture. There is nothing that evokes emotion like the Maddona and Child, whether you’re talking about one of Raphael’s many depictions of the subject, or a simple TV commercial for children’s paracetamol. In the artwork entitled “Aruga” Rey Fuentes gives us another rendition of this touching theme, this time rendered in driftwood narra.

There is something very fitting about the use of narra to portray the uniquely loving relationship between a mother and her baby. Narra, after all, is the tree that we have chosen to symbolize our motherland. It is a hardwood that is said to be almost as lasting and durable as iron and far more rich and evocative in appearance. “Aruga” is a term that means “to care for” and only a substance as steadfast as the narra can approximate how strongly and fiercely a mother will protect and nurture her child.

“Aruga” is a teardrop-shaped wood carving that depicts a mother holding her baby close to her body. She is facing out to the viewer with her eyes closed as her child – with its back to us and his cheek pressed against her lips –nestles towards her to enjoy the caress. The artist places great emphasis on his subjects’ bodies and features, but his attention is focused to the middle of the piece where the action happens; the lower part of this piece is more roughly finished. Meanwhile, above the loving pair is a towering, arrow-shaped slab with a carved circular symbol in the middle that could stand for the sun or some other source of light or energy.

This is a powerful piece with a simple message. Unlike the ringleted, fair-faced, and delicate-featured Madonnas of mainstream Western art, we have a mother who has long straight hair, strong features, and a determined rather than a tender look on her face. This is a depiction of motherhood that focuses on the strength that must underlie the softness and gentility of a woman once she has a child.

To view or purchase this artwork, you can visit Chings Resto-Kaffee at the Jade Dragon’s Suites, one of the elegant yet cheap hotels in Davao City. At this Davao hotel, you’ll be treated not only to comfortable accommodations and good food but to an inspiring dose of local culture as well.